Safari Hunter V

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If you ever wanted to bag a deer without the bloodshed, give Safari Hunter a DL

By Levi Buchanan

Time to bust out the big guns, because you're going out on safari to bag some dangerous quarry. Like rabbits. And pigs. Sure, there's other fearsome beasts, like a tigers and wild boars, but never take your eye off the sheep. The moment you least expect it, it's payback for turning his mother's hide into a Cosby sweater.

Features:

Arcade style hunting action

9 unique animals to hunt

7 different weapons and items to purchase

99 levels

High score rankings

JAMDAT looked to the east for Safari Hunter V, the latest in a successful line of big game hunting titles that are popular in Asia. The game is a simple pleasure, you start out with pretty much a slingshot and a forest of fairly helpless animals. Down a couple of these slow moving targets and sell them for gold. Use said gold to buy bigger weapons so you can track and bag bigger beasties.

That's the essence of Safari Hunter V, hunt and sell, and if you're not a member of PETA or the least bit uncomfy with the idea of riddling animal hides with bullets, then you might get a kick out JAMDAT's mini "Hatari!" sim.

The first forest you enter is fairly small, just a few screens squared. Using the keypad, maneuver around the forest (no scrolling, buddy--this is first-gen) until you happen upon an animal. Like any classic RPG, you don't actually see the your prey coming, you're just suddenly transported to a battle screen.

You control the itty-bitty hunter at the bottom of the screen--complete with pith helmet--and your quarry is at the top. The animal has a little more room to move. It has two lines, top and middle, to dart back and forth between. Try to bust the beast when it's on the top level, because if you are caught directly beneath it when it moves to the middle, it can swipe you with it's claws. Fortunately, on later levels when you're facing down an aggressive bear, there are rocks to hide behind.

Once you plug the animal enough, you are congratulated with a big "You Win!" and then it's off to the shop to sell the hides for cash. Score enough, and you can upgrade your weapon or buy a hunting dog to help with particularly tough quarry. More likely, though, you'll be spending that bling on extra bullets, as the bigger animals take many, many shots to bring down.

Safari Hunter V looks fairly decent on the Motorola T720 we tried it out on. The screen is decently colorful, and the sprites are fairly detailed--even though we weren't exactly convinced that's what a pig looks like from fifty meters. There is a middling soundtrack, with an opening tune and some sound effects sprinkled throughout the game.

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The Verdict

Kudos to JAMDAT for bringing that Deer Hunter action to my pocket. Politics and PETA aside,Safari Hunter recognizes the limits of these early 3G phones, and works well within those boundaries to create a pretty clever timekiller for armchair (and trainstop) big game hunters. If you ever wanted to bag a deer without the bloodshed, give Safari Hunter a DL.